2007 DENNY REUNION

NOTICE TO ALL----

2007 DENNY REUNION

SATURDAY, AUGUST 18TH, 1:00 PM

THORNE'S BACKYARD

1522 SOUTH 1000 WEST, SYRACUSE, UT

PLEASE BRING A POT LUCK DISH...WHATEVER YOU LIKE

PLATES, CUPS, UTENSILS, NAPKINS WILL BE FURNISHED

WE WILL ALSO HAVE ICE WATER.

IF YOU PREFER A DIFFERENT DRINK, PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN.

PLEASE PASS THIS INFORMATION ON TO ANY FAMILY MEMBERS YOU SEE,

ESPECIALLY IF THEY MAY NOT SEE IT ON THE BLOG.

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL THERE.

LYNN AND RUTH ANN THORNE

Epic Vacation part 1.

We started our trip in NYC, one of my favorite places on Earth. The pace is dizzying, but I dig it.

We quickly discovered a Pinkberry's RIGHT NEXT TO OUR HOTEL. That was a very tasty surprise.

We went to the new Museum of Modern Art and saw some INCREDIBLE exhibits (during a monsoon). We also so a very fascinating exhibit called DESIGN LIFE at the Cooper Hewitt. It was all about how design is EVERYWHERE in our daily lives (even in places we don't know).

We subwayed all over including to the Williamsburg hipster neighborhood in Brooklyn. LOVED that neighborhood. Artists everywhere.
And of course we visited MECCA with all the other pilgrims. There were probably 1000 people in this store at all times. More to come. I'm wayyyyy behind, but we haven't had an internet connection (except our phones) until now.

I HAVE MOVED.....

As of yesterday I have officially moved out of my 700 square foot apartment into my new 8,651 square foot mansion!!! I am not joking, I currently reside in the master suite of this home. I have three other roommates (one is moving in two weeks so there will only be 3 of us total). It has four floors (I have the second floor to myself) and a hot tub on the roof. There is about 20 stairs between each floor and it is quite a hike to the roof. It is for sale, so if any of you would like to purchase it for 1.6 million dollars and still let me live there I would really appreciate it!

My new address is 87 E Street Salt Lake City, Utah 84103


Thank you to my entire family for helping me move. Now hopefully I won't have to move again anytime soon!

Rollercoasters!

If anyone loves rollercoasters and wants to go to the best rollercoaster amusement park in the world, then you should check out Cedar Point in northern Ohio (Rand & Crew). Its only about 45 minutes from our house and anyone is welcome in our home. Kirtland and all the other church history sites are about 30 minutes away so you could make it a whole family vacation! This is our last full summer here, so I thought that I would throw the invitation out there one last time for anyone interested. Here is the link for Cedar Point, they also have a huge waterpark: http://www.cedarpoint.com/ Let us know!!

Kent


PS. There are a ton of golf courses out here with your name on them (Dave, Mark)!!!

Happy B irthday to Amy!

Happy Birthday to someone who's not only a great mom, but also a fantastic cook, and one of the most creative people in our family. Amy, we hope you have a wonderful birthday.

Today you're busy getting ready for a wedding shower, but take a little time out for some birthday celebrating for yourself. Let Dave take you out to dinner, go shopping, maybe get your nails done. You deserve it!

Happy Birthday Amy. We love you lots!

Thanks Campers

A big thanks to the Drapers, Willeys, and Dave Dennys for helping us have such a fun evening. It wasn't 5 minutes before Rylie's shirt was dripping with red watermelon. I think Mason ate 2 pounds of Dave's famous popcorn. Sadie introduced everyone to her crying, but it was still a great time. The Dennys are awesome!

Beach House Vacancy.

Ooops. Wrong picture. That's Monticello! This is our house below.
We're off on one of our endless vacations and the house will be available for beach getaways from July 30th to August 14th. Mark and Lisa are coming July 21st to 29th. There will be no dog to tend, and very light chores (perhaps a tiny bit of watering). Beyond that it's just beach blanket bingo. Let me know if anybody has time off and is up for it so we can arrange the key swap etc. We'll be traveling from New York to Virginia to Cincinnati to St. Louis to Kansas City to Denver to Utah. I know some of the family lives in those parts so let me know if any of you are up for a visit.
If you come to Venice you might even see one of these! Or hundreds. Peace.

Tazzie, WE LOVE YOU

On Sunday, July 15th while camping at Bear Lake with Travis (since he is working at the BSA camp for the summer), our dear, very much loved Tazzie passed away. Several months ago, at her physical and vaccinations, the vet said her heart murmur was getting a little worse and that it would be just a matter of time before her sweet heart would give out. (Like a year or two) She gave us some meds, not for a cure, but to prolong her life somewhat and to keep her comfortable and not in pain. The last few weeks, she was looking and acting tired, just not having the 'umph' like she always did. Through out the weekend, she would pant heavily at times and get really hot, but then it would go away. We discussed taking her to the vet when we returned. But early Sunday afternoon, it became apparent she wasn't going to make it. So we all sat around her and Mark said a beautiful prayer that she would go in peace and without pain. Within 30 seconds of the 'amen' she was gone. She did die peacefully and is now running in heaven with Vera and Jake, the schnauzer. We miss her tremendously; those silly dogs - they just become part of your family, but we know she's happy, pain free and playing! We buried her behind the barn, so she could look out over the mountains and the fields that she loved so much. If anybody wants to stop by and see her cute little grave, they are welcome to. Thanks for your support.

ZOO-PARADE-SWIMMING!! Isn't summer great!

Swimming on the 4th--Lauren is almost as big!!
The boat is on dry land, but Sophie didn't want to go anyway.
We saw the white alligator --it was real cool.
Everyone was enjoying, but very hot--Cooper couldn't stop drinking for the picture.
West Btfl parade---enjoyed by all. This parade throws more candy
than all the other parades combined.

Willeys are having a GREAT summer!!
Love to all...

this picture and article was in the ogden paper last week about the jazz dancers and Jessica is in the photo. not the best picture of her though. i scanned them in, so you'll have to enlarge them to read the article. congradulations again Jess.

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Happy Birthday Babe! We love you lots and hope you have a great day!

Breaking Up is Hard To Do

Just reporting in that I have made it for ONE WEEK with no soda pop. I'm not planning to permanently give it up, but I would like to be able to tame my serious addiction down to having one as a treat every once in a while!

There's Always a Party

We had a good birthday celebration today for Mason and Ryan. There were some really cute pictures that I just had to share. Mason got about everything an 8 year old could wish for: candy, a football, a squirt gun, and a skateboard. And yes, he spent most of the day teasing his sister. :)



P.S. Has anyone been up East Canyon where some of ya'll are camping this weekend? Are there hikes, or a lake? Is it trees or will I need my own shade if we make it? Any info is appreciated.

Happy Birthday MASON & EVERETT.

Today there are TWO BIRTHDAYS worth celebrating. Mason has just turned 20 (I think) and Everett is just turning hmmmm...8? 9? It's so hard to keep up with all these Nephews and Great Nephews. So Mason, how will you spend your day in Wyoming now that you're 20? Probably you'll be spending it with your girlfriend, driving around in your car, and then maybe BBQ some steaks. And Everett, are you going to dress up like Batman again like you did a few years ago? Or will you spend it playing baseball and teasing your sisters? Then eating a big piece of cake. Like I said, it's hard keeping up with such a big family. Sorry about the little tiny picture of Mason. I couldn't find a bigger one. Have WONDERFUL birthdays. We love you both.

We can't let a day pass without a birthday!

Imagine being NINE. If I were nine I'd be excited that Harry Potter was released on my birthday, I'd spend as much time as I could playing video games, I'd have plans to be a Professional Soccer Player or famous Scientist when I grew up, I'd spend hours upon hours in the swimming pool until my hair turned a nice shade of WHITE, I'd beg and beg and beg and beg some more for my own iPhone, even promising: "I'll call you constantly," (don't worry, that's not happening), I'd ask for SUSHI for my birthday dinner, I'd beg and beg and beg for my OWN dog, a Golden Retriever or maybe a Miniature Dachshund, and I'd forgo a birthday cake for a trip to PINKBERRY'S. Sounds like the perfect day, huh Gunther? Have a wonderful birthday Gunther. We LOVE you.

Birthday Summer 2007 Continues:

Today is Austin's 4th birthday! At least I think it's his fourth. That means he's entitled to FOUR TIMES THE FUN today. If he wants he can eat FOUR slices of cake. (But, that might give him a tummy ache.) He can open a present in FOUR seconds. Rip that paper. He can make FOUR wishes when he blows out his candles. And he can stay up FOUR MINUTES past his bedtime. Enjoy your birthday Austin. As you can see turning FOUR has its advantages. We love you.

Happy Birthday, Ang!

Happy Birthday, Ang! I know you're the best thing that ever happened to me!

We love you tons! Yeah, tons!

D, K, M, R, C, S

HAPPY 4th of JULY

Hook-up fee for family camping trip....$15

Picture with mom...almost unheard of
Flowers from MAin Street Gardens...$20
Flags for the kids to wave....$2
Neighbors that spend $1000 on fireworks.....PRICELESS or CRAZY!!!

Kynaston's are fine...

WE have had a ton of rain, but we are fine. This would actually be a great time to visit Mcpherson. It resembles Portland with all of the lush green trees, grass and plants. :) SO glad to hear Lar and her family are fine. All of the pictures don't look familiar (but I know I been to almost all of those places) That's a lot of rain. Kansas has had a lot of flooding but the majority of it is in the south east corner (close to Bartlesville). Thanks for your thoughts.

Emily

Ethan and Mitchel in the Tub at Aunt Kalyn's

The youngest Ostler boys are visiting Aunt Kalyn for a few days. They had fun trying out the whirlpool tub last night.

can you say Jazz

Well, I thought I would brag a little about our new or soon to be daughter-in-law. Yesterday Jessica was selected as a new Utah Jazz Dancer! she's been in the try out process for about a week that started with over 200 applicants. when the smoke cleared yesterday, she was one of the five selected! I don't know many details yet, but I guess it's a paying job where the girls get paid for practice, performance, and promotion time. she'll be busy with the schedule and will probably have to postpone or reduce her school schedule this next year, but she does love to dance and is very good at it and it will be quite an adventure. we love and are proud of her.
I'm not too sure how Stu will cope with her absence as they're pretty inseperable now, but I guess he'll adjust, especially if she can hook him (and his dad) up with some tickets. hint, hint :)
I'll give more info as I get it.

No Tomatoes, but Zucchini Happening Here

Cheesy Zucchini with Garlic and Parsley

Zucchini Salad with Tomatoes and Basil

I see that Rand has completely beaten me on the early tomato contest, but here are two things I made from my first zucchini (round 8-ball zucchini) and some basil from my garden. I've converted the bed in my back room into a platform for taking photos and these are my first photos with all natural light. I can't link to the recipes or people can find our family blog by following the link, but both recipes were awesome.

I highly recommend the 8-ball zucchini if you haven't tried growing them. Good flavor, and great for grilling.

P.S. The tomatoes are from Costco.

You can stop praying for rain now!!

We have had a few inquiries, so thought we should give you all a look. Here is a peek at the aftermath in Bartlesville. We are fine and dry, but some we know have damage or came very close.

As you can see from the top 2 photos, we won't be playing soccer or at the park anytime soon. The white bars that you can see in one of the photos are the soccer goals!!



The bottom two pictures are just accross the street from the home of one of the sisters that I visit teach. The water did not reach her home. :) The river actually crested at 22.5 feet and flood stage is 13 feet, so we have a lot of extra water all over Bartlesville. This was a 100 year flood -- the problem is that we already had the 100 year flood back in 1986 (only 21 years ago).



Can you say MOSQUITOES!! I hate to even think about how many of those little creatures we will soon have!!


Today Carl and Liz did not have work, because the roads across town (the river goes right through the center of town) were totally flooded over.


Inspite of it all, we're well -- We hope you're all dry and well too.

Stuart Wedding update

since the invitations are still in the process of ordering and shipping out, I thought I'd give an update on their plans.
July 27th, 2007 (friday) we'll be driving down to St. George to spend the night before Jessica takes out her endowments on Saturday July 28th. if any would like to come, we're staying in a friends large home (we have the entire home) and anyone is welcome, although some might have to do inflatable beds.

August 4th, 2007 (Saturday) (I think late afternoon or early evening) Stu and Jess are holding their wedding breakfast / dinner. all are invited. it's at an LDS church bowrey in Layton. more info to come.

August 8th, 2007 (wednesday) (I think 9:00 a.m.) Stuart and Jessica wedding ceremony at Salt Lake Temple (I think, hey I'm the father of the groom and the details are a little fuzzy to me!) we are somewhat limited to my siblings for this as the room only accomodates 45, but there will also be more info to come. their reception will be this evening in Layton.

we'd love to have all there, but also understand that distance, time, and other family conflicts may not allow some. we'll see those who make it and love from a distant those who cannot. We'll be getting the invitation out soon, but I wanted to get some info out now as I realize this is a very busy time of year and wanted to give you options. thanks for doing what you do. love to all

Tomato pickers take your places.

Tomato fest 2007 has officially begun. I picked these two red tomatoes yesterday from my little garden. I realize we have a little bit of a head start here in California as we could plant tomatoes in December if we wanted. Ahhhhhh. Summer tomatoes.

It's Official....................

We're Engaged!!!

FOR ANGEE: How to organize your photos.

Since Ang was kind enough to ask how I organize my photos I thought I'd share the secret with all of you. Here it is: Be lucky enough to be born into a family with an older sister named Laurel (yes, that is her in the picture). Let Laurel gather up ALL the family slides and photos and magically (after hundreds of hours of work no doubt) put them all on incredibly organized CD's, each labled with the exact contents of the CD. Lar even organized them by sibling, year, family etc. It's an unbelievable CD collection and one that I reach to almost every time a birthday rolls around. I can't tell you how much I appreciate all the work that went into that project. I LOVE it. In fact, yesterday I spent a few hours putting an old old picture of each of my siblings into my iPhone so that when I call (or get a call) from any of them their photo pops on. Very cool. Thanks for making me look very organized Lar. I just absolutely LOVE that collection. PS: other than that Ang, for me with the pictures I take, I organize them into albums on iPhoto. You have a Mac don't you? It makes it SIMPLE.

D Draper Update

Just thought I would take a second and give a quick update on us Drapers. Pretty much we are enjoying the lazy days of summer. I love the days when it doesn't matter if it is Monday or Thursday.

Darren just got back from a conference in Atlanta where he was adored. He is also doing lots of schooling this summer. The picture above is us sporting our Atlanta shirts he brought back.

The kids have just been playing. Kenzie likes our new toy we made (our soccer goal) and Mason has been playing baseball and a bit of golf. Rylie is Rylie and Camrie is a trouble maker. Baby Sadie is just growing up fast. She has the cutest smile. As for me (Ang), I'm just soaking it all in and taking pictures along the way. (How do you organize all your pictures Rand? I'm amazed at all the pictures you have share. Any advice is appreciated.)

We had a fun BBQ at Becca's new house yesterday. Jaxon has the cutest new bed. I hear he got it from the nicest Denny couple with 4 boys. If they had another one, I know someone who would love it for their birthday in July. :)

We miss you guys and hope to see you all at a get together soon.